From Athleisure to Lifewear

A few weeks ago I spoke about the trend Athleisure signposting a shift in consumer expectations of their clothing. I summed up the shift with the following words;

‘Atheleisure wear is more comfortable, more useful, more practical clothing and it’s on this omission that I openly ask, why would we return to anything less?’

The purpose of the article was to recognize that with ‘better’ product being sold by the active wear industry, its highly unlikely consumers will return to anything less comfortable or lower performing. This shift has meant that designers and makers have had to respond in order to retain their market share i.e. denim’s declining sales, lost to Lycra leggings.

Uniqlo have been the fastest to recognize the change in attitudes towards clothing by suggesting what Athleisure will look like in the future. Their new campaign features a series of adds by Droga5 London. They’ve coined the term ‘Lifewear’ which features in adverts suggesting that people can expect their clothing to do more, perform to a higher standard and enhance the experience for the wearer. The most interesting element is that this isn’t clothing classified as active wear, it’s referred to as clothing meant for every day life.

There’s an entertaining short focused on a wireless bra. The wireless bra is the holy grail of any brand looking to stake a claim as selling the most comfortable, highest performing product. Interestingly it’s also one of the hardest products to get right.

And there’s another one with a more serious tone, centered on ordinary clothing being completely unordinary.